I know this is an old post and felt compelled to address some points of disagreement with ugaarguy. Had I seen this and been a member 3 years ago I would have addressed it then.ugaarguy wrote: ↑Wed May 09, 2018 2:46 pmI'll attempt to bring this back on topic. I have highly corrosive sweat, so I have to take most knives apart to clean them occasionally. Anything with a steel liner where moisture can be trapped between the steel and the scale requires me to disassemble, clean, and reapply a corrosion mitigating product every 3 to 6 months. With liner less knives, or knives with titanium liners I can usually get away with just loosening the pivot, flushing it out fresh water, drying with compressed air, and then re-tightening the pivot with a fresh dab of thread locker. That greatly lengthens the interval between times that the knife needs a deep cleaning to remove stuck on gunk from the pivot.
The point is, I don't have the option not to disassemble my knives if I don't want them to rust. Even using magnetic bit holders, and a soft bench mat with raised edges in a well lighted area, on the very rare occasion a screw or other small part gets lost. I'm not asking Spyderco to give me screws (although it would be nice if they did like several of their competitors do), but I am asking them to sell me screws. If Spyderco won't sell screws (and standoffs and washers), then they should at the very least supply owners with exact sizes so we can source them ourselves.
Under the current system, that's not an option. So, instead of a few dollars to cover the cost of a couple screws (or washers or standoffs) plus postage, we have to send knives in. That requires paying for shipping and insurance both ways, the risk of losing the knife in the mail, the cost of the part, the cost of a factory tech installing part, waiting time for the installation to get through the warranty repair queue, and waiting time on the return shipment after the part install is complete. That's a lot of time, money, and risk that could be eliminated by simply selling users the parts, or even simpler emailing the customer with "Here are the dimensions for that part so you can get a replacement" (from a knife making parts supplier or a specialty hardware supplier like Fastenal).
When I then look at the fact that after the price increase Spyderco is charging the same price or more for equivalent knives that competitors offer with better parts support, I'm seeing a greatly reduced value. Sal and Eric's designs are some of my favorites both in how they look, and how they almost always fit my hand well, but I'm struggling with the value for price.
Sal himself stated some very good points. And Sal has final say. After all it is his company and I trust Sal's reasoning over random users. Even if I may disagree or not understand some of his policies. I am sure they exist for good reason(s).
The thing is though 95% of the people who disassemble knives end up doing it wrong and return the knife marked as new for a refund. Then it gets passed on to other customers who may end up with an expensive faulty knife and get a refund. Write a bad review about Spyderco. Then that knife goes into another customers hand. And they write a bad review blaming Spyderco for something that is not their fault. This repetitive pattern can harm a business and in some cases force them to close their doors through no fault of their own.
I get also that people do not like to wait 2 to 3 weeks possibly more on overseas customers. On sending a knife in to Spyderco for maintenace work. So an easy solution is to buy a few Spydies or other brand to take place of the knife you sent in for maintenance until your product arrives. If it gets lost in the mail or UPS. Get insurance on your product. So you can recoup your loss.
I got corrosive sweat also and live in a high humidity area ugaarguy. I rinse my knife under cold tap water. And set it in front of a fan. Or use a generous amount of compressed air in a can for PC keyboards to dry it out. Occasionally followed by a drop of oil on top of the blade by the washer/bearing area and let the oil work it's way in if it needs to be oiled for easier opening. I have yet to see any knife of mine set up rust in the handle frame from my method. The most I have ever done regarding tinkering with a knife is very occasionally when needed adjust the pivot or add loktite blue to keep proper tension on the knife.
I am completely siding with Sal on this. Due to the fact that my first Spydie purchase was a purple colored handle Endura that had been disassembled. On opening the box. It was obviously a used knife I paid for as a new knife. A stripped torx screw in the handle. And over tightened bushing/bearing located in the pivot that can and will damage the opening action of any knife. It was very gritty opening. And at the time put a bad opinion in my mind about Spyderco and kept me from purchasing anymore of their products.
Thankfully I started learning more about knives, researching more topics on this. And those who improperly return a knife they disassembled and re assembled wrong. Hence I decided to give Spyderco another chance. And I am now a customer. And wish I had known of the issues I mentioned when I bought my first knife that was improperly tampered with. If you don't like Sal's stand on this issue. Then feel free to shop elsewhere. Or respect the man's decisions regarding his business and livelihood.
For the record. I got no issue with people who disassemble their knives. You are free to do as you please with your purchases. But when it has been done improperly 95% of the time. And is being resold on various sites as new instead of used. And as a result customers are paying the full MSRP for a used and possibly improperly assembled knife that was damaged from improper amateurs. And often damages the company's reputation through no fault of their own. That pisses me off a bit.
I won't even mention how many used and improper Kershaws and Cold Steel knives sold as new I have had to return for refund. Due to amateurs disassembling the knife and improperly maintaining it. On top of making that new purchase a used one for full MSRP.
If you have a problem waiting a few weeks for a knife to return from the factory and cannot buy or use another knife in place of the knife being returned to the manufacturer. Then I might suggest buying local from your state/country. Using another knife for the time until your knife returns from the factory.
's in 10 different steels
